While Little Rock and Memphis were among the top 10 most violent cities in America last year, Pine Bluff was not, according to a national survey.
The survey by 24/7 Wall Street was based on an analysis of 2011 crime statistics prepared by the FBI, compared with 2010 figures.
According to the annual report, violent crime dropped 4 percent in 2011 compared with a 5.5 percent drop in 2010. The murder rate declined 1.9 percent last year compared with 2010 figures, and robbery, forcible rape and aggravated assaults fell 4 percent each.
Based on police department figures for 2011, violent crime in Pine Bluff, including aggravated assault, murder, rape and attempted rape, robbery and simple assaults, declined 12.39 percent last year compared with 2010 figures.
Specifically, there were 17 fewer aggravated assaults, eight fewer rapes and attempted rapes, 18 fewer robberies and 215 fewer simple assaults last year than were reported in 2010.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
The only category of violent crime that increased in 2011 was homicide. There were 14 last year, compared with eight the previous year. There have been 12 homicides in the Pine Bluff city limits this year.
“We’ve worked hard and gotten good cooperation out of the prosecutor’s office,” said police Capt. Greg Shapiro. “And, we’re taking steps to try and keep those reductions moving.”
The 10 most dangerous cities in the U.S. last year, according to the 24/7 Wall Street report, were as follows:
1. Flint, Mich.
2. Detroit, Mich.
3. St. Louis, Mo.
4. Oakland, Calif.
5. Memphis, Tenn.
6. Little Rock, Ark.
7. Birmingham, Ala.
8. Atlanta, Ga.
9. Baltimore, Md.
10. Stockton, Calif.
The national survey indicated that the murder rate in seven of those 10 cities increased last year compared with the previous year, and burglary rates went up in eight of the 10.
Arkansas was ranked the eighth most violent state by the survey, which took into account an incarceration rate of 552 per 100,000 people, the nation’s highest death rate for teenagers (1 in 1,000) and a poverty rate of 18.4 percent, the third highest in the country. The state averaged 4.7 murders per 100,000 people.